Wings in Bondage
by Mistian Thorn
Summary: In the war of 2035, everyone lost everything. Their pride, their money, and their chance to survive. Elliot aka Adam, a teenager with a secret worth hiding, is no exception to this. After being discovered by a witch and his family he is forced to give up the life he once loved to save the person he cares about the most.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Chapter 1**

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><p>Adam walked silently across the familiar ice covered path, his teeth barred tightly against the arctic cold. His doom was close, he could feel it. Only a couple more minutes and he and his family would be done for. Well... maybe not him specifically but his family was done for. Especially considering the amount of money they owed...<p>

"Adam sweetie, are you all right?" a voice asked.

Adam wrapped his arms tighter around himself, in a failed attempt to to keep in the heat. Maybe if he squeezed himself hard enough, the loss of circulation would be enough to kill him... or at least knock him out. How much farther?

"Adam honey, please answer me, you know it's going to be all right…" the voice said again.

Adam pushed his head farther into his coat and took in a deep ice filled breath. His family owed too much money, they'd never live it down...

"Adam, give me a sign you're still here, come on honey, you and I both know this is for your own good…" the voice persisted.

Adam moved his head up slightly then took a deep, shaky breath. His life was over, they owed too much money. The woman they were going to go see would probably kill them or turn them into animals for slaughter. Or worse...

"Adam!"

Adam glanced up fully and cleared his head. "Yes mom?"

"I was asking if you were okay. You're shaking." The woman responded softly, gingerly putting her hand on his shoulder.

Adam glanced down at his hands quietly then pulled them closer to his body. They were shaking harder than a ice snake in spring. "Oooh, I hadn't noticed..." he replied quickly, ignoring his fear.

The woman sighed softly then removed her hand from Adam's shoulder, gently putting it back to the side of her slim body. "Adam, you know it's going to be all right don't you? Your brother, dad, and I are the ones that are in trouble, not you."

"But that means you'll all be forced into slavery." Adam whispered softly, his heart pounding in his chest. "She's turn you into animals and eat you."

"She's not going to do that..." his mother said clamly. "She's much better than that."

Adam sighed softly and gazed away, his eyes dark. "You don't know that, she could kill every one of her slaves and nobody would know it...

Please, can we just go home? I promise I can find another way to get the money."

"No honey, we can't do that." his mother replied softly. "You can't afford the work and we need to pay our debts." She quickly rearranged her basket she was carrying in her hands then gestured Adam and the rest of her family forward, urging them toward the dark house at the top of the hill.

After about an hour of traveling, Adam found himself and his family in front of a house that looked mildly like a dark version of the mansions he used to see in Beverly Hills magazines. The only difference between this one though was it was covered in vines and had a large sky-high tower at its edge. To him it looked like the place rich people went to die, or in his case, poor people went to die...

"Everything okay Adam?" a voice called out.

Adam forced his head out of the clouds and then glanced over at the woman adressing him. "Yeah, I'm fine." he replied quietly.

The woman nodded softly then gestured the young man standing next to Adam to the door, his face in similar features with his brother. "You ready to go?"

"Yes mom, I'm ready..." The young man responded softly. He quickly ran up to the door and pushed the bell in front, then took a step back, tears running down his face. If he hadn't gotten sick this wouldn't have happened. If he hadn't gotten sick his mother would have been able to get the money to pay for their house bills. Why did the witch have to own every inch of property from there to the other side of the town? Why did he have to get sick?

"Neil sweetheart, are you okay?" his mother asked again.

Neil quickly wiped the black drops draining from his eyes and stepped back farther away from the door. "Yeah, I'm fine…"

As soon as he said this, the door in front of him slammed open and a woman with dirty blond hear stepped out. "You rang?" she asked plainly.

Adam's mother gingerly urged Neil forward then handed the woman the basket she had been holding in her arms. "Hi," she said quickly. "We're the Lamberts and we're here to discuss our debt we owe you…"

"Oh yes," the woman responded calmly. "The debt. How much do you owe me again? 500,000?"

"... um... yes... that..." Adam's mother responded awkwardly. She quickly handed the woman a small bundle of cash and a small bundle of goods. "Um... we can't really afford that right now... can we please hold a few more days for rent or maybe work it off?"

The witch raised her eyebrow slightly then took the small bundle of cash. "You don't have the money? You said you had it last week..."

"I know I know..." Adam's mother responded quickly. "I said I had it last week but I promise we can have it by the end of the year..."

"The end of the year?" The witch snapped. "How can you do that? You promised me money this week! If you cannot find a way to pay up the money we'll have to come to another agreement..."

Adam's mother quickly forced down a gulp then handed the witch a note. "Another agreement? I don't think we can offer much more..."

"Oh you can offer me something..." the witch smirked.

Adam's mother quickly stepped back then put her hand on Neil's shoulder. "I don't think our slavery will be of much use to you, we're only human..."

"Human?" the witch asked curiously. "I wasn't talking about taking you. I have enough humans. All they do is whine and complain about their enslavement. No... what I desire is something much more... something different..." Her eyes wandered to the young man awkwardly standing at the corner of the path.

Adam quickly shifted positions and looked away. He knew he should run at about now, she knew too much... that made her dangerous...

The witch calmly strut over to Adam and put her hand on the edge of his jacket, making sure she had a firm grip. "Just look at him. He's gorgeous! The natural dark spiky hair, the pale skin, enticing blue eyes... every part of him screams abnormal..." Her hand found its way under his jacket and gingerly stroked the large area hidden by his coat.

Adam immediately slapped her hand away and moved back toward his mother, his eyes frightened. "Mom, can we leave now?" he asked.

His mother shook her head softly then walked over to him, gingerly putting her hand on the edge of his back. "No... And what's this about him being unusual?"

The witch shrugged and walked back over to Adam, stroking the back of his jacket. "I don't know… his hair, his skin, his eyes… the fact he won't let anyone see him with his jacket off… Haven't you've ever noticed how strange he is? Honestly, who has aqua blue eyes with death pale skin and naturally spiking black hair? For me that's a big indicator of nonhuman…"

"Don't listen to her mom!" Adam snarled, quickly backing away. "She's crazy!" He quickly pulled away from the woman and backed up toward the path they had traveled to arrive.

Adam's mother shook her head and walked over to Adam, gently touching the edge of his leather jacket. "I don't know honey… she drives an awfully hard bargain…" She gingerly slipper her hand under the edge of his jacket and slowly pulled it off. Underneath the jacket lay two large, gorgeous, ebony colored black wings with a slightly silver shine on the tips. "Oh my god…" she whispered.

Immediately Adam backed himself away, his body slightly shaking. … "Mom can leave please? This place frightens me…" he whimpered. They knew too much... too much...

His mother shook her head and walked back over to him, examining his wings. "No... Adam, how long have you had these?"

"It doesn't matter… We don't need to be here…" Adam responded quickly. He could feel his body starting to shake, he needed to leave, and leave soon. "Mom please…" he begged. "We don't need to be here."

"How much you asking for him again?" Adam mother asked, turning to the witch.

The witch smirked softly and stroked Adam's soft black wings, gently squeezing the muscle. "All your debts paid and all the rent money you could need. I'm also willing to throw in medicine for life. What do you think?"

Adam quickly backed away from the two women and hid himself back inside his jacket. His mother wouldn't, she couldn't...

"Sounds good." Adam's mother replied calmly. She took hands with the witch and shook then turned to Adam. "Sorry sweetie," She said gently. "Neil needs his medicine…"

"No, you can't…" Adam whimpered. "I'm not part of this…You said you wouldn't... no... no... No!"

Before anyone could touch him he quickly opened his wings and took off full speed, effortlessly propelling himself into the air.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Chapter 2**

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><p>Adam's heart raced with the intensity of a thousand suns. What had appeared to be the witch's house towering thousands of feet above him was now only a small black speck on the ground. Never had he flown so fast nor so far in his life. Already he could taste the freedom. His mother, brother, father, life, were all a distant memory now. Not even names mattered anymore. Nothing mattered anymore. They could take care of themselves, they weren't his problem anymore. Especially his brother, it wasn't his fault he'd gotten that infection, it'd been Neil's idea to go walking across that mine field.<p>

A tear passed down Adam's face at the thought of his brother's screams as his eyes crossed the now blacked, long abandoned, mine field just east of the house. He knew what he was doing and he loathed himself for it. That traumatized look on his brother's face, one year ago, as he dragged him out of that mine field, wings outstretched with Neil screaming in horror, drenched in blood, was something he could never forget.

Go get some groceries, his mother had said. Go buy yourselves a new coat she had said. In what part of those instructions did she say they could cross the minefield to get there? It had been Neil's stupid idea not his. He knew what those fields held, yet Neil did not listen to him.

Adam wiped another tear from his face as the memories came crashing back, stabbing his heart over and over again with the screams of his brother.

Neil was dying and there was nothing he could do about it. He had crossed that spot of dirt Adam told him was armed. It was Neil's fault! He should have listened, but he didn't.

Thinking back, Adam considered his choice on the matter. Telling Neil not to do something was like telling a two year old not to touch the stove. It was stupid to even bring it up.

Tears passed down his face as his eyes fell to the dark house below him. The guilt was enough to kill him. Knowing his mother, she would scream at him and tell him he was the worst brother in the world. "It should have been you that had been killed".

Adam wiped away another tear. When he'd heard that loud boom deep within the field, the only thing he could think of was that it was his fault he hadn't gone first and made sure it was safe. His parents could survive without him, they wouldn't even notice he was dead. Neil on the other hand, they would kill themselves over.

"You can't continue to blame yourself Adam, it's hurting you inside."

Adam stared at the sky above him. He swore it had just spoken but knew it was impossible. That voice was of something familiar. His own voice except calmer.

His "conscience" always came in when he was feeling low. Even after the weird incident in the mine field he was there. "It's not your fault Adam. Conceal, don't feel, don't let them know…" He had said.

Adam laughed softly at the lyrics of the song that had already become once again so popular with people in his generation. It was an old song but it still held meaning. And his subconscious had been right, if he had let the incident get to him, it certainly would have destroyed him. He had concealed and not felt and refused to tell anyone the truth about what happened. Not even Neil knew.

Adam's eyes fell to the ground once more. The dots of his family stared at him. He knew none of them would ever come close to understanding how Neil had survived. Not even the sad story Adam had made up had begun to cover it.

A claim that he had stumbled into the minefield and hit a mine was certainly not enough to convince his mother. The fact Neil was crying while Adam stood there emotionless covered in burns certainly told a different tale than what happened. The fact he was injured to the point of almost death while the screaming Neil said Adam was an angel was more than crazy.

Adam didn't really understand why he had Neil's burns at the time, even now he didn't understand.

From what he could figure of it, his mind had moved into a dream-like hypnotic state when he'd dragged his brother's almost corpse from the field. Nothing he'd ever known could explain it. All he could truly remember, that wasn't completely ridiculous hallucinations, was him screaming and praying for someone to save his brother and take him instead. On the hallucinations side of course, there were a couple odd things to note.

One was his mind had creating some strange illusion that he was trapped in an endless dark pit with no escape. He could remember staring up and seeing the sky hidden behind crystal bars just barely big enough to fit through. But he couldn't fly. His wings were chained to the sides of the pit, and the chains were fastened so tight around his neck he was choking.

He swore he would have died but somehow the crystals just cut into him and knocked him unconscious, letting him live.

Adam shuddered at the thought as his eyes scanned the empty sky before him. At the time he'd swore he'd almost died trying to free himself from those damn things. Burning hot to the touch and sharp as hell, those things had nearly ripped and burned him to a crisp. Luckily though they'd let him live, sort of.

At the end of the dream he remembered laying at the bottom of the pit with a bright light shooting towards him. At the time he'd figured he'd died and this was him moving to the afterlife.

How right he'd wished he'd been. Instead of bringing him to the afterlife, it burned him even further and knocked him out to the point where he was in a coma. He swore he laid there for days.

It was a miracle he'd escaped the crystals alive let alone the light. But then again, he was born with wings, not too much could have surprised him.

Adam remembered the relief and dread of waking up. That moment had been one of the worst and ones of all his existence. It was a mixture of excruciating pain but with a hint of relief. He could put up with the pain. Pain was only temporary. Guilt was forever. When he'd woken up he'd had crystal shaped burns and almost his entire body cut up and bleeding. But at the time, it didn't matter. Neil was completely healed. Not a cut scrape or bruise could be found on him, not even a paper cut.

Adam grit his teeth as his mind fell towards the pain he'd felt so long ago. It may not have bothered him then but thinking back on it, it disturbed him. Never in his life had he felt anything even close to this kind of pain

He could still remember himself screaming bloody murder like a maniac. It was almost like his body was under the impression he'd had all his skin ripped off, then had his body dropped in a bucket of salt and alcohol, and to finish the deed stabbed twenty times. Survival was not even an option for him at the time. He should have died. Nobody knew of such pain and lived. But yet God had still, for some reason, given him enough strength to live.

He hated himself for the wounds. Out of all the stupid burns he'd received Neil still had the infection, and that's what had gotten them. Every day, Adam saw his brother's condition go from bad to worse. His mother couldn't even find a simple cure. After many weeks his parents had been forced to borrow money from the witch to pay for his medicine. Money that could never be paid back… The debt had been overwhelming. No matter how much medicine his mother bought from the woman, it never seemed to keep the infection permanently away. Sometimes Adam swore the woman did it on purpose but then again, she did use it on her slaves and it worked well.

Adam sighed softly and glanced back at the ground, forcing his mind from the memory. Four specs still stood below him, one of them waving a very small fist at him and the other waving something in the air.

The first one he'd already known to be his mother, obviously angry with him for being so selfish, and the other, most likely the witch trying to figure out some way to get him back.

Adam forced his mind closed from everything and flew higher, pushing all thoughts of everyone from his mind. Freedom was so close he could feel it. Besides, even if Neil got free medicine it wouldn't help him. It didn't work last time, what would be so different now? He loved his brother to pieces but he knew Neil was too far gone. His family had had so little faith in him, his mother had taken him to pick out a coffin last week. Of course Adam thought that was a bit too far on his mother's part but he knew the truth. For weeks now he'd watched Neil rot away, his face becoming stick thin, and his eyes yellow with illness. No, no natural medicine would save him. Not even he himself could save him. The only way Neil was going to survive was if the little crystals came to visit him again.

"Little crystals I know you're not real," Adam spoke, his voice only a whisper in the wind. "But if you half the beasts I think you are, you will kill me and save my brother instead. His life is worth so much more than mine…" He flew higher and attempted to push the people of the past behind him. He could hear his conscience again. His conscience didn't want to die, he hated to the crystals. They were nothing more than black magic plotting to kill him and his brother.

Adam stared back at the ground. His vision blurred. He could begin to see purple from the corner of his eye. "No, it's impossible…" Adam said, his eyes darting like those of a madman's. The crystals weren't real, they couldn't just appear…

"No!" he quickly forced his mind from the soft light. The more he ignored it the dimmer it became.

Eventually he ignored it so much the light disappeared. This was a good sign. He had conjured it, he swore of it, and maybe control it. Maybe he could use the light to save Neil. He just had to get him to a secret location where he could take care of him. A nearby cave would do nicely. There he could keep Neil safe and perform his secret ritual. Nobody would have to know, not even Neil. He could put him to sleep and then do the magic and take the pain away. Then he would let him go and send him to the safety of his parents' house to live out the rest of his life in happiness. Then, and only after then, would Adam let the infection take its course and let it kill him. He knew death for him wasn't far away anyway. Being a person with wings certainly didn't make his years any better. If anything they were lessened, and that way okay. Death never really frightened him. It was nature, you couldn't fight it.

"Adam you get down here right now!" a voice screamed from the ground, the voice piercing in the air.

Adam's hawk-like eyes scanned the ground. His mother was standing below him waving her fist at him. He knew he couldn't waste time talking to her. He had to find the secret location and set up the cave for the ritual. Only after that could he save his brother. There would be no room for her. If she got involved things could go bad. Letting people know about this power was dangerous.

"Adam please," the person called again, this time easily identified to be his mother. "I have to get dinner ready. I need to get Neil home."

Adam turned away. Now was the time to go, he'd never get another chance like this to save his brother. His eyes scanned the ground around the base of the mountains to the east. No caves could be seen but he could see small patches of space where the snow was slightly melted. There was an underground cavern somewhere around there, he could feel it. The warmer it was the better.

"Adam..." His mother groaned. "Will you please come down? You're being childish."

Adam forced his mind back to its normal state, his eyes leaving their current mission. Something was wrong. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck standing up and that only meant one thing, danger.

Something was up. Someone else was talking on the ground. Their voice was deep and soft. It was a woman's except it was unfamiliar to him. He recognized it, but it wouldn't be a voice he heard on a regular basis.

"Are you sure he'll be okay?" he heard a voice ask. The voice had a higher tone. It was definitely his mother.

"Yes he'll be okay..." the other voice answered."I'll get him in soon enough, he just needs some time to cool down..." Adam felt something touch his wings, almost like someone was gripping him. 'Oh god no...' he thought silently, she couldn't, she wouldn't... his brother's life depended on this… no… she couldn't!

"No damage?" the first voice asked.

The other voice shifted and appeared to be stroking something small and green on their hand, at least by how much he could see. "Of course not, why would I damage my goods?"

Immediately Adam began felt the air around him run cold and his wings begin to stiffen to the point where he could hardly move them. 'Oh god no...' he thought silently. His wings slowed, he swore he could feel a cramp move through them.

"Adam..." he heard a voice from the ground call."You have two choices right now, you can come down gracefully and willingly or you can come down at my choice. Your mother's not here right now so I don't have to worry about being nice..." Adam felt the grip on his wings grow tighter, and his body began to ascend slowly toward the ground.

He tried to move his wings but to no use. They were almost frozen solid and it felt like his muscles had been turned to mush. Whatever this woman was doing to him was far deeper than any magic he'd seen before.

"No! You can't take me!" Adam shouted. He knew it was no use but he forced his wings to move in their usual pattern. It was harder but he was making progress. Her magic could only extend so far. The edge of her property was probably the limit.

"Come on Adam..." The voice persisted again. "It's much easier on you and me if you land."

"No!" Adam screamed. He pushed his body harder and zig zagged through the air. He felt more like a flying chicken than an eagle but he was nearing the edge, it was only about ten more feet.

"Okay, you've left me no choice."

Adam immediately felt his wings get covered in thick sheets of ice and his body began to rapidly fall from the air. 'No!' he thought defiantly. "No! She can't. I won't let her!" He forced his wings through the ice and took off full speed over the edge of the house. He was almost away... two more feet…

"Adam wait!" He heard a voice call.

Easily recognizing the higher pitched voice, he glanced down. A woman of about forty stared up at him, dressed in rags and carrying a basket.

"I've changed my mind on the deal, you're free to come home! I'm sorry I ever went through with this. You're my son and I love you. Please come down."

Adam stopped for a second then glanced down at the ground. Standing in front of the large house was no other than his mother. Calm and relaxed she appeared to be talking with the witch.

"I don't believe you." Adam called out, hovering. He felt a slight feeling of unease but he forced it down. She was just as concerned for Neil as he was. If she was willing to listen then he would tell her about the crystals. As long as he could save Neil first he could risk being found out. He would only live so long anyways after the infection. A couple months tops.

His mother opened her arms reassuringly and gestured for him to come close. Her arms appeared more like those of a bear than a mother. "Honey you know I only want the best for you," She said. "This whole deal was a stupid idea. Just calm down and we'll go home and act like this never happened."

Adam felt the grip on his wings loosen. He allowed his body to relax slightly. If this was what it took to save Neil then he would have to learn to trust her, even if it was temporary.

"You coming honey? We still got to get home and get dinner ready." His mother said.

Adam nodded though with some reserves. He would never completely trust her again but he had no other choice.

Her awaited him. "Come on honey, you're all right… let's just go home…"

Adam landed near her, he walked into her arms, his body tense.

"Oh sweetie..." his mother whispered softly. "You know I love you..." Adam felt her fingers move toward his wings and gingerly stroked them. A strange cold pain shot down his spine. Something was wrong…

"Just remember I'm doing this for your own good..." her voice whispered. Her voice was becoming deeper, eerie.

"Mom, what are you doing?"

His mother smiled with a look that looked like that of a cat ready to pounce. Her cold hands slid under his soft ebony colored wings. "Oh nothing…" she whispered. "Just what needs to be done…" As she said this, she finished moving her hands under his wings then suddenly gripped them tightly and snapped her arms in opposite directions, causing a sickening pop to come from soft wings on Adam's back.

Adam didn't scream surprisingly, though he did collapse for a second. But this didn't last long, before he knew it he was back on his feet attempting to fight his way out of his mother's arms and away from the witch's. If he could walk home with third or fourth degree burns then a broken wing was nothing. He cried out though when his mother pulled on his wing and eventually after attempting to fight, collapsed once again to the ground.

"You can take him now."

Adam forced his head up and stared in horror at the woman walking toward him. She was wearing a shawl with a medium black dress and long dirty blond hair. "No, no!" He screamed, attempting to free himself from his mother. "You said I could go home with you. You lied to me you psychotic bitch!"

"Adam calm down." the woman opposite to him said gingerly. "I'm not going to hurt you. It's going to be okay. Sh..." Adam felt a gentle hand come down and his chin and gently wipe the tears running down his face. Was the pain making him cry?

"Adam please," The woman repeated. "Let me take you inside and get you situated. Your wing's broken and needs repaired immediately, please, I just want to get you calmed down. Please..."

Adam felt her gentle hand run along the side of his face and stroke the back of his hair. She was trying to bribe him into coming inside... no she couldn't have him, never! "No!" Adam screamed. "I won't do it! I won't go... Mom make her let me go, I know how we can help Neil! I know how we can…" His mother's hand came over his mouth and shot something into his arm. Within a couple of seconds his vision began to cloud over.

"That's enough Adam! Stop acting like a child and behave. It is for your brother after all… you'd think you'd care a little bit more for him than this…" He felt himself moved into the arms of the person with the black dress and given a second dose of whatever she put into his arm before.

In the corner of his eyes he could see the soft purple light of the crystals fading, into what appeared to be a deep empty void. It was all over now, Neil was going to die and he was going to live and there was nothing he could do to save him.


End file.
